Logos and No-gos: Sky's the limit for Skype

Comment on the recent decision of the General Court of the European Union in relation to Skype's trade mark application for the figurative and word mark "Skype" and the opposition to this application from Sky plc.

Almost 10 years after Skype first applied for its mark, the Court has upheld earlier Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market decisions and has rejected Skype's application on the basis that Skype's mark:

  • covers identical goods and services to Sky's registered word mark "Sky"; and
  • is phonetically, visually and conceptually similar to Sky's mark.